Do you need a consultation?

If you have already chosen the perfect pattern for your tattoo (perhaps from the LuckyFish Art Design Shop), and all we need to do is size and place it, you probably don't need to come to the studio in advance for a consultation. Similarly, minor tweaks can often be done the day of your appointment. We have put together this handy video about the different ways that a Celtic Knot Tattoo can be rendered, so that you can consider your choices for personalization ahead of your appointment.

However . . .

If your tattoo is a large scale project or requires custom drawing, or you don't know exactly what you want yet, you must come to the studio in advance to consult with my employee ColinFraser and I.

This can often be accomplished the day before your installation appointment. For example, you could consult Saturday afternoon for a tattoo installation Sunday, making your visit to Santa Barbara a weekend getaway.

As a general rule, we do not consult at a distance via phone or email; it’s just too complex, and the potential for misunderstanding is too high. We want to see your arm (or other body part) in person, let you look at our physical archives, and work together to create and/or customize your tattoo design.

ColinFraser Purcell at his workstation, mocking up a Client's tattoo.

For the first phase of your consultation, you’ll be working with ColinFraser. He will guide you through the appropriate files, discuss color and placement options, etc.

If your tattoo is a custom piece, you and Colin will begin the process of mocking-up the design digitally, so that you can see it come to life on the computer screen.

It is likely we will begin by taking a picture of you and proceed to design the tattoo right on your body in Photoshop! The goal is to have you visualize the tattoo in advance, and articulate for us your preferences. Seeing it superimposed on your skin in a portrait may even convince you to get it a little larger than you had planned..... being able to look at yourself as others will, objectively, helps a lot in choosing an appropriate scale for the tattoo.

"I think it should be 25% bigger . . . "

I will be right there, just on the other side of the room, usually installing a tattoo on another client, but available for questions, input, and guidance as necessary.

ColinFraser and I have been working as a team like this for more than a decade, and we find it to be a very efficient and effective system.

Once the basic framework has been established, your design becomes my "homework" - I take it home and spend all the time necessary to craft your final design without having to rush or compromise. This way, we can get right to work with tattooing on your appointment date.

I appreciate that it is a big leap of faith for you to see something on paper and imagine it on your body, so it helps if I have overnight to prepare a paper version for you to see, even showing shading, color or dots, so we can be absolutely clear about rendering choices.

Pat Fish and ColinFraser Purcell with another happy client!

If it's easy for you to get to the tattoo studio, your consultation does not have to be the day before - it could be the week before, or any other time we agree on.

If you aren’t quite clear on what you want yet, you can also make a deposit to secure a consultation date, and the actual installation appointment can be left open-ended. That allows us to begin the design process and clarify your ideas. As we narrow in on a pattern for your tattoo, then you can choose a date for the installation .

It is always my goal to have each person get a tattoo as unique as they are, and yes that takes a little more effort on the client's part than just walking in and pointing at a flash pattern on a wall. But the result is worth it, as the tattoo will be an expression of your aesthetics for the rest of your life.